Budget Padding: Court to hear Jibrin’s suit Oct 21

A Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday fixed October 21 for hearing in a suit filed by a former Chairman, Appropriation Committee, House of Representatives, Abdulmumin Jibrin,‎ challenging his suspension from the House.

Jibrin, a lawmaker from Kano State, was on Wednesday suspended by the House of Representatives for 180 legislative days.

This happened while the embattled legislator’s suit which he filed earlier on August 9, 2016, then seeking a court order to stop any plan by the lower legislative chamber to suspend him, was still pending before the court.

Jibrin’s suspension on Wednesday was fallout of his campaign since July for the removal of the House of Representatives Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, and other principal officers of the House over allegation that they padded the 2016 budget with about N40bn.

The legislator had filed his suit during the just concluded vacation of the Federal High Court, but he could not get it heard by Justice Okon Abang, due to the plaintiff’s failure to first seek and obtain leave of the court for the hearing of the‎ case during the period.

The case was reassigned to Justice John Tsoho when the court resumed from ‎vacation and the matter was fixed for Friday for mention.

Jibrin’s lawyer, Mr. Mohammed Abdulhamid, on Friday informed the judge that the House of Representatives had, by going ahead to suspend his client ‘overreached’ his client’s motion filed before the court to seek an order restraining the House from carrying out the suspension.

Justice Tsoho said since the day’s business was for the mention of the case, he would prefer to adjourn it till October 21 for the hearing of all pending motions.

Apart from Jibrin’s motion, also pending before the court is a notice of preliminary objection filed by the House of Representatives ‎and other defendants challenging the jurisdiction of the court to hear the case.